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April 29, 2005
State Catholics have faith in PopeBy THE ASSOCIATED PRESS "I think he will continue the legacy of life and the human spirit," Bishop Joseph Pepe said, citing comments Ratzinger made during a Vatican homily at the start of the conclave to select a successor to Pope John Paul II. "I think it's a delight to have a man of his gifts and abilities, particularly since he was a close collaborator of John Paul II," said Pepe, head of the Las Vegas diocese, which includes 24 parishes with a combined Catholic population of almost 500,000. Our Lady of the Valley Catholic Church in Pahrump is a member of the diocese. There are no church records of the new pope having visited Nevada or Las Vegas, said Pepe, who added that he exchanged a friendly greeting with Ratzinger and shook hands with him once when the two met on a street at the Vatican in August 2000. In Northern Nevada, Chancellor Matthew Cunningham of the Reno diocese said he and other local church leaders are unsure whether the new pope will institute any major changes. "I don't have any idea what his particular agenda will be," Cunningham said. "It's something that will have to work out as time goes on. "`Every pope has put his own stamp on the papacy and I'm sure this one will, too. It would be a mistake for people to think he will be a carbon copy of Pope John Paul II." Bishop Phillip Straling of the Reno diocese met the new pope in Rome as well as at a bioethics workshop in Texas a couple of years ago. |
